Mile Repeats

In a sense, every run we go on is a mile repeat, we just vary the number of reps and the amount of effort put into each mile. Tuesday morning I ran again with MP, this is turning into a reliable meet-up for us. I for one am grateful for it because I am still struggling with motivation some days, and now that it’s dark in the mornings I have to do even more self-coersion to get myself out the door for a run. But meeting MP for an out and back along the West Side HIghway Greenway is a great way to ensure I’ll show up–for her and for myself. I forgot Little G so I am unsure of my mileage (I can’t remember where we turned around, some place south of Chelsea Piers) — probably around 5 or 6. It was a nice easy run spent catching up on our weeks and musing about the days ahead.

Tonight I met LW at Paragon Sports for the Nike Pacers speed workout. I was really looking forward to this all day long. Once again, my mood was such that I was unsure if I’d have shown up at the workout just for myself–but I couldn’t let her down, and I couldn’t wait to see my dear friend. Coach Kate gave us a tough workout (she always does) of 3 x 1 mile with 200 meter recoveries for the 8-minute pace group (again, based on 5k pace). My splits were 7:56, 7:56 and 7:53; in total I ran more than 6.5 miles tonight. I wasn’t nearly as tired as I thought I would be at the end of the workout–I don’t know if that means I did it properly (stayed relaxed, locked into the pace) or if I should have jumped down to the 7:30 group. We’ll see how I do in the Get to the ‘Point 5k in Greenpoint, Brooklyn this weekend; if I PR again, maybe I’ll give myself a test at the faster pace. (My 5k PR from August was run at a 7:55 pace, but my 3.5 mile PR from August was run at a 7:35 pace.)